Transfer account machine, non-transitory computer medium having computer program, and associated computer-implemented method

RELATED APPLICATIONS

0001This application is a continuation of and claims the benefit and priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/338,584 titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, And Associated Computer-Implemented Methods” filed on Dec. 18, 2008, which claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/016,213, by Sorbe et al., titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Associated Methods” filed Dec. 21, 2007, and U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/052,454, by Sorbe et al., titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Methods to Prioritize Payments from Preselected Bank Account” filed May 12, 2008, all of which are each incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. This application also relates to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/338,402, by Sorbe et al., titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Associated Computer-Implemented Methods” filed on Dec. 18, 2008; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/338,440, by Sorbe et al., titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Associated Computer-Implemented Methods” filed on Dec. 18, 2008; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/338,645, by Sorbe et al., titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Computer-Implemented Methods to Prioritize Payments from Preselected Bank Account” filed on Dec. 18, 2008; and U.S. application Ser. No. 12/389,749 filed on Feb. 29, 2009 titled “Methods to Advance Loan Proceeds On Prepaid Cards, Associated Systems and Computer Program Products, which claims priority and benefit to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/029,975 filed on Feb. 20, 2008 titled the same, each and all of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

0002This application is also a continuation of and claims the benefit and priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/782,550 titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, And Associated Computer-Implemented Methods” filed Mar. 1, 2013, which claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/282,186, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,392,299, titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, And Associated Computer-Implemented Methods” filed Oct. 26, 2011, which claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/338,365, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,055,557, titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Associated Computer-Implemented Methods” filed on Dec. 18, 2008, which claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/016,213, by Sorbe et al., titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Associated Methods” filed Dec. 21, 2007, all of which are each incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

FIELD OF INVENTION

0003The present invention relates generally to the financial service and banking industries, and, more particularly, to systems, computer program products, and associated computer-implemented methods of providing prioritized payments from proceeds of automatic deposits.

BACKGROUND

0004Today, a bank customer can authorize a loan provider to debit a customer's bank account, e.g., a checking, savings, money market, for a loan payment, or, more generally, a customer can authorize a creditor to debit the customer's bank account for a bill payment. Funds, however, may or may not be in the account at the time the creditor is authorized to debit the account or receive the funds from the account. Furthermore, the bank authorized to make the debit controls the order of presentment. This allows covering of an overdraft to the bank itself first or processing larger items early in the day in order to generate more overdraft fees when multiple smaller items are processed later in the day. Rather than bounce one big check, for example, banks may choose to bounce several smaller checks to generate extra fees.

0005It is known for banks to offer money management systems that have a money management account and a discretionary fund account in which bills are paid directly from the money management account on a customer-determined schedule, and excess funds beyond the customer's budget are transferred into the discretionary fund account. It is also known that such a money management system can be used in conjunction with loan payments. These offerings, however, still require the customer to determine a budget and schedule of payments. In addition, these offerings depend on the customer's discipline for not accessing the funds in the money management account, funds which are known to the customer and belong to the customer.

0006Other systems or methods include having an employer make loan payments on behalf of an employee directly out of payroll. Such solutions needlessly involve the employer in the finances of the employee, which can raise privacy concerns and introduce complexity into the payroll process.

0007Direct deposit proceeds, as the name implies, are often directly deposited into a bank customer's deposit account, also known as a checking account, savings account, or bank account. That is, a direct deposit is a payment that is electronically deposited into an individual's account at a depository institution. A direct deposit can be more generally known as an automatic deposit. Partially as a result of the situation with funds not being available to authorized creditors, among other reasons, many people simply do not have a traditional checking, savings, or other deposit account; they do not write checks. Instead, their automatic deposit proceeds, such as payroll and government benefits, typically are deposited into prepaid card accounts. Often these customers limit payments to available funds on a prepaid card.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

0008Applicants have recognized numerous problems with current offerings for loan and other bill payments and one or more sources of these problems. For example, Applicants have recognized that it can be difficult for a creditor to be assured of payment for an authorized debit using a traditional bank account unless a customer is willing and able to balance or manage the deposit account, recording each and every deposit, check, Automated Teller Machine (ATM) withdrawal, and debit card transaction, including automatic withdrawals and bank fees. Also, from a customer's point of view, there is a need to be able to prioritize loan payments or other bill payments without having to balance a check book. That is, a customer may like, for example, to have his car payment debited from the proceeds of his payroll check immediately, rather than ever having access to the funds. Prioritized loan and bill payment can improve the customer's payment history and, thus, improve the customer's credit rating or credit score to thereby result in lower interest rates for the customer on any future loan. From a loan provider's perspective, there is great value in being able to prioritize loan payments. By reducing the risk of non-payment, in many cases substantially so, the loan provider should be able to offer more affordable loan products, benefiting both the loan provider and also loan customers. Payment prioritization, according to embodiments of the present invention, should reduce the risk of non-payment as compared to the risk that the source of the automatically deposited funds dries up (i.e., the worker's employment is terminated) or is redirected (i.e., the worker changes the automatic deposit routing).

0009In view of the foregoing, Applicants provide embodiments of transfer account systems, computer program product, and associated computer-implemented methods of providing prioritized payments from the proceeds of automatic deposits according to the present invention. According to embodiments of the present invention, for example, a transfer account acts as a new form of pass-through or sweep account, allowing automatic deposit funds to be intercepted and swept of prioritized loan or bill payments relatively instantaneously after the customer has access to the proceeds, resulting in the customer effectively having access only to any surplus funds, that is, the automatic deposits funds net of the prioritized payments.

0010According to embodiments of the present invention, various situations with recurring automatic deposit funds can benefit from a transfer account, including, for example, employer payroll funds to individuals, federal or state government electronic benefits payments to individuals, and bank-initiated payments to merchants for credit card sales. Recurring automatic deposit funds also include annuities, dividends, interest payments, lottery winnings, royalty payments, and other streams of payments as understood by those skilled in the art.

0011According to embodiments of the present invention, various types of payment on behalf of the customer can benefit from embodiments of the present invention, including, for example: (1) payments to a third-party (i.e., credit card, utility, cell phone bills) under a license agreement from the bank providing the transfer account; (2) a customer-initiated gift card purchase; (3) customer remittance of money to family located internationally or outside of a country; (4) loan payments to the bank providing the transfer account; (5) customer-initiated bill payment; (6) customer transfer of money to another transfer account customer, and others as understood by those skilled in the art. Note that, according to embodiments of the present invention, prioritized payments may be recurring or non-recurring events.

0012As understood by those skilled in the art, Automated Clearing House (ACH) is the name of an electronic network for financial transactions in the United States, regulated by the Federal Reserve. Embodiments of the present invention, for example, use standard ACH payments to receive the automatic deposit funds and to send the automatic deposit funds and prioritized payment information to another financial institution or prepaid card processor.

0013Embodiments of the present invention include a computer-implemented method of providing prioritized payments. Under the computer-implemented method, a financial institution enrolls customer accounts, whether prepaid card accounts or deposit accounts at another financial institution, in a prioritized payment program. As part of enrolling in the prioritized payment program, the customer pre-authorizes payment requests by one or more select creditors from the account. The financial institution computer maintains one or more lists of account identifiers for accounts enrolled in the program. Next, the financial institution computer receives an incoming ACH file, a batch file as understood by those skilled in the art, including one or more automatic deposits for an account enrolled in the prioritized payment program. The financial institution computer compares the account identifiers in the incoming ACH file with the maintained lists of enrolled account identifiers. For each account enrolled in the prioritized payment program with an unfilled pre-authorized payment request by a select creditor, the financial institution computer appends to an outgoing ACH file one or more prioritized payments responsive to the unfilled pre-authorized payment requests. The outgoing ACH file includes entries for the automatic deposit from the incoming ACH file and entries for the one or more prioritized payments, so that the automatic deposit is credited to the account and relatively instantaneously any prioritized payment to a select creditor is debited from the account, resulting in the customer effectively having access only to any surplus or net funds.

0014Embodiments of the present invention further include the generating of fees by the financial institution computer for the financial institution for the one or more prioritized payments from an account enrolled in the prioritized loan program to one or more select creditors when these prioritized payments are appended to the outgoing ACH file. Fees can be based per account, per transaction, per vendor, or otherwise as understood by those skilled in the art.

0015The embodiments of the present invention enable the offering of new products and promotions by requiring a customer to enroll in the prioritized payment program as a condition of a transaction. For example, a mobile phone provider's standard offer today, for example, can include a new phone for $100 upfront with a one-year service agreement at $75 per month. According to the embodiments of the present invention, a new offering can be a new phone for no upfront costs with one-year service agreement at $75 per month, with the agreement requiring the routing of payroll funds via automatic deposit to a transfer account and pre-authorization for the payment of the monthly bill. In this example, the mobile phone provider receives, as part of the service agreement, prioritized payment each month from the proceeds of the customer's automatic deposit.

0016In other embodiments of the present invention, a customer is required to enroll in the prioritized payment program as a condition of a loan. For example, a lending institution can offer a car loan to a customer having a low credit score and without a traditional deposit account if the customer will enroll in the prioritized payment program, including pre-authorizing loan payments to the lending institution and routing the customer's payroll deposit to a transfer account.

0017In yet another embodiment of the present invention, a bank can offer a merchant a discounted small business loan rate if the merchant will route the automatic deposit of the merchant's credit card receipts to a transfer account and allow that bank prioritized loan payments from the credit card receipts funds.

0018Embodiments of the present invention include computer program product to implement the methods described and shown. Embodiments of the present invention include a computer program product, stored on a tangible computer memory media that is readable by a computer, providing prioritized payments from the proceeds of automatic deposits, the computer program product comprising a set of instructions that, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform various operations. The operations include maintaining lists of account identifiers for accounts enrolled in a prioritized payment program by a financial institution, receiving an incoming ACH file by a financial institution, comparing the one or more of the account identifiers in the incoming ACH file with the maintained one or more lists of account identifiers for accounts enrolled in the prioritized payment program, and formulating one or more outgoing ACH files responsive to the incoming ACH file. In the event of a match between an account identifier on a list of accounts enrolled in the priority payment program and an account identifier in the incoming ACH file, the operations include appending to the outgoing ACH file one or more prioritized payments from an account enrolled in the prioritized payment program to one or more select creditors responsive to one or more unfilled pre-authorized payment requests by the one or more select creditors, so that the automatic deposit is credited to the account and relatively instantaneously any prioritized payment to the one or more select creditors is debited from the account. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the operations further include notifying a select creditor that the incoming ACH file includes one or more accounts enrolled in the prioritized payment program prompting a payment request by the select creditor.

0019In addition, embodiments of the present invention include systems, computer program products, and associated computer-implemented methods of providing prioritized payments for loan, bill, and other payments from the proceeds of automatic deposits as will be understood by those skilled in the art, so that a customer has effective access through the customer account or on a prepaid card only to a net value of funds.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

So that the manner in which the features and benefits of the invention, as well as others which will become apparent, may be understood in more detail, a more particular description of the invention briefly summarized above may be had by reference to embodiments thereof which are illustrated in the appended drawings, which form a part of this specification. It is also to be noted, however, that the drawings illustrate only various embodiments of the invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of the invention's scope as it may include other effective embodiments as well.

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 1A and 1B</figref> are respective front and back plan views of a prepaid card as used according to an embodiment of the present invention;

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2</figref> is a front plan view of a display screen of a computer displaying an excerpt of an account activity statement according to an embodiment of the present invention;

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 3</figref> is a schematic block diagram of a system to provide prioritized payments for a prepaid card account according to an embodiment of the present invention;

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 4</figref> is a schematic flow diagram of a system to provide prioritized payments for a prepaid card account according to another embodiment of the present invention;

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5</figref> is a schematic block diagram of a system to provide prioritized payments for a customer bank account according to an embodiment of the present invention;

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 6</figref> is a schematic flow diagram of a system to provide prioritized payments for a customer bank account according to an embodiment of the present invention;

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref> is a partial list of prepaid card account identifiers for accounts enrolled in a prioritized payment program by a financial institution stored in memory of a computer and capable of being displayed on a display screen of a computer according to an embodiment of the present invention;

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8</figref> is an excerpt of an incoming ACH file with automatic deposits entries stored in memory of a computer and capable of being displayed on a display screen of a computer according to an embodiment of the present invention;

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 9</figref> is an excerpt of an outgoing ACH file with automatic deposits and prioritized payment entries stored in memory of a computer and capable of being displayed on a display screen of a computer according to another embodiment of the present invention;

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 10</figref> is an excerpt of an outgoing ACH file with headings stored in memory of a computer and being displayed on a display screen of a computer according to another embodiment of the present invention;

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 11</figref> is a flow diagram of a computer-implemented method of prioritized payments according to an embodiment of the present invention;

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 12</figref> is a schematic diagram of a program product stored in memory and executable by a computer according to an embodiment of the present invention;

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 13</figref> is a flow diagram of a computer-implemented method of prioritized payments according to another embodiment of the present invention; and

<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 14</figref> is a schematic diagram of a program product stored in memory and executable by a computer according to another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION

0035The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate embodiments of the invention. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the illustrated embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

0036One source of the problems with current offerings for loan and other bill payment, as recognized by Applicants, is that money that can be accessed is often spent. The adage about money burning a hole in the pocket is apt. Although a bank customer can authorize a loan provider to debit the customer's deposit account for a loan payment, or, more generally, a customer can authorize a creditor to debit the customer's deposit account for a bill payment, there is no guaranty that the funds will still be available at the time of the request for payment. That is, a creditor can debit the customer's account too late, or too early if new funds have not been deposited. Applicants recognize that a preferred time for a debit is immediately after or relatively simultaneous with the receipt of a deposit, especially a recurring deposit such as payroll or government benefits.

0037Embodiments of the present invention, as illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 1A and 1B</figref>, for example, can include a prepaid card <b>101</b>. As understood by those skilled in the art, prepaid cards can include a logo <b>102</b> associated with a provider or sponsor of the prepaid card and an expiration date <b>104</b>. Prepaid cards <b>101</b> are typically associated with an account number <b>103</b>, and a prepaid card account can often be reloaded with additional funds. Prepaid cards <b>101</b> often have a magnetic strip <b>105</b>, as understood by those skilled in the art, and are coded so that the code received by a point of sale terminal or other interface processes the code so that a value is associated with the code, for example, to allow purchases with the prepaid card through a communications network <b>26</b>, as illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 3</figref>, to authorize payment from a bank or other financial institution through a prepaid card processor <b>40</b>, and to decrement the value associated with the card <b>101</b>.

0038Embodiments of the present invention, as illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2</figref>, include a display screen of a computer displaying an excerpt of an account activity statement for a customer account <b>110</b>. The account activity statement can include a list of activities or transactions, sorted by one or more of the time <b>111</b>, description <b>112</b>, credit <b>113</b> (or deposit or addition), debit <b>114</b> (or withdrawal or subtraction), or balance <b>115</b>. The account activity can provide for various periods of time, including a day (as shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2</figref>), a week, a month, or otherwise as understood by those skilled in the art. For example, the overnight balance <b>116</b> can be provided. Then a credit, such as, for example, an automatic payroll deposit <b>117</b>A, can be listed. Debits, including prioritized payments, such as, for example, for a car payment <b>117</b>B and a cell phone bill <b>1170</b>, can be listed. Other transactions, such as, a balance inquiry <b>118</b>, an ATM withdrawal <b>119</b>, an ATM fee <b>120</b>, or other fees and transactions as understood by those skilled in the art, can be listed. According to embodiments of the present invention, the automatic deposit is credited to the account and relatively instantaneously any prioritized payment to the one or more select creditors is debited from the account (as illustrated in the time column <b>111</b> for transactions <b>117</b>A, <b>117</b>B, and <b>117</b>C) so that the customer effectively has access to only the surplus funds.

0039Embodiments of the present invention, as illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 3 and 4</figref>, for example, include bundling an entry for an automatic deposit with an entry for a prioritized payment to a select creditor in the same ACH file <b>42</b> directed to a prepaid card processor <b>40</b>, so that the automatic deposit is credited to the customer prepaid card account <b>38</b> and relatively instantaneously any prioritized payment <b>44</b> to the select creditor <b>34</b> is debited from the account. In another embodiment of the present invention, as illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 5 and 6</figref>, for example, the ACH file <b>42</b> is directed to a customer financial institution <b>48</b> associated with a customer bank account <b>52</b>.

0040<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 9 and 10</figref> illustrate an excerpt of such an ACH file <b>42</b> according to an embodiment of the present invention. <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 10</figref>, for example, includes heading information in the ACH file <b>42</b> for illustration purposes. For the automatic deposit entries, the ACH file <b>42</b> includes a record type <b>42</b>A, a transaction code <b>42</b>B, routing number <b>42</b>C, check digit <b>42</b>D, a DFI account number <b>42</b>E, the dollar amount <b>42</b>F, an individual ID <b>42</b>G, individual name <b>42</b>H, product type code <b>421</b>, addenda indicator <b>42</b>J, and trace number <b>42</b>K, as understood by those skilled in the art. Likewise, all of this information is included for the prioritized payment entries. As illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 10</figref>, an ACH file <b>42</b>, for example, may be a batch file, as understood by those skilled in the art. With this information and organization, according to embodiments of the present invention, the prepaid card processor <b>40</b> or the customer financial institution <b>48</b> processes the ACH file <b>42</b> so that the automatic deposit is credited to the customer account and relatively instantaneously any prioritized payment <b>44</b> to the select creditor <b>34</b> is debited from the account.

0041By offering prioritized payments, the embodiments of the present invention enable the offering of new products and promotions. According to the embodiments of the present invention, these new products and promotions can require a customer to enroll in the prioritized payment program as a condition of a transaction. The financial institution <b>28</b> maintains the list(s) of accounts enrolled in the prioritized payment program <b>46</b>. Therefore, a utility customer can receive a discounted rate, as understood by those skilled in the art, if the utility company receives a prioritized payment <b>44</b> each month from the proceeds of the customer's payroll, a source of an automatic deposit <b>22</b>, according to the embodiments of the present invention.

0042In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a customer is required to enroll in the prioritized payment program as a condition of a loan. The financial institution <b>28</b> maintains the list(s) of accounts enrolled in the prioritized payment program <b>46</b>. In another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a merchant is eligible for a discounted small business loan rate if the merchant routes the automatic deposit of the merchants credit card receipts to a transfer account and allows that bank prioritized loan payments <b>44</b> from the credit card receipts funds. As understood by those skilled in the art, credit card receipts are a source of automatic deposits <b>22</b>. Embodiments of the present invention provide, for example, for credit or a loan from the financial institution defining a first financial institution or by a second financial institution different and remote from the first financial institution. That is, the financial institution can provide the transfer account and related products and services in conjunction with its own efforts to extend credit or in conjunction with lending and credit efforts by another financial institution or institutions.

0043<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8</figref> illustrates an excerpt of an incoming ACH file <b>32</b> with automatic deposit entries stored in memory of a computer and capable of being displayed on a display screen of a computer, as received by the financial institution <b>28</b>. As understood by those skilled in the art, the incoming ACH file <b>32</b> includes header and batch information <b>100</b> about the ACH file, such as origin, destination, and record size and type. The incoming ACH file <b>32</b> is a batch file with multiple entries for automatic deposits, for example, from ABC COMPANY to various individuals, such as DOE, JOHN, at various institutions according to an embodiment of the present invention.

0044According to embodiments of the present invention, a computer program product <b>64</b>, as illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 12 and 14</figref>, associated with the financial institution computer <b>30</b>, stored on a tangible computer memory media <b>62</b>, and operable on a computer <b>30</b>. The computer program product, for example, includes a set of instructions <b>64</b> that, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform various operations as described herein. The computer program product <b>64</b> can maintain one or more lists of accounts enrolled in the prioritized payment program by a financial institution (blocks <b>66</b>, <b>140</b>). <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref> illustrates an example of such a list, according to embodiments of the present invention. After receiving the incoming ACH file by the financial institution (blocks <b>68</b>, <b>142</b>), the computer program product, according to an embodiment of the present invention, compares the accounts in the incoming ACH file with the maintained lists (blocks <b>70</b>, <b>144</b>). Then, the computer program product, according to an embodiment of the present invention, formulates one or more outgoing ACH files <b>42</b>, responsive to the incoming ACH file <b>32</b>, and appends to the file a prioritized payment <b>44</b> from an account enrolled in the prioritized payment program to a select creditor <b>34</b> (blocks <b>72</b>, <b>146</b>) in the event of an unfilled pre-authorized payment request by a creditor computer <b>36</b>. This, for example, transforms the file from one type to a different file type. Therefore, according to embodiments of the present invention, the automatic deposit is credited to the customer bank account <b>52</b> or prepaid card account <b>38</b> and relatively instantaneously the prioritized payment to the creditor computer is debited from the same account.

0045According to embodiments of the present invention, sources of automatic deposits <b>22</b> include: employer-initiated direct deposit of payroll, a federal or state government-initiated electronic transfer of benefits payment, and a bank-initiated payment to a merchant for credit card sales. According to embodiments of the present invention, recurring automatic deposits funds also include annuities, dividends, interest payments, lottery winnings, royalty payments, and other streams of payments as understood by those skilled in the art.

0046Embodiments of the present invention include computerized or computer-implemented methods of providing prioritized payments, as illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 11 and 13</figref>. According to embodiments of the present invention, for example, a financial institution enrolls customer accounts by use of a computer and flagging or identifying the customer as an enrollee, whether prepaid card accounts (see <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 11</figref>) or deposit accounts at another financial institution (see <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 13</figref>), in a prioritized payment program. As part of enrolling in the prioritized payment program, the customer pre-authorizes payment requests by one or more select creditors from the account. The financial institution computer maintains one or more lists of account identifiers for accounts enrolled in the program (blocks <b>80</b>, <b>130</b>). Next, the financial institution computer receives an incoming ACH file (blocks <b>82</b>, <b>132</b>), for example, in the form of a batch file as understood by those skilled in the art, including one or more automatic deposits for an account enrolled in the prioritized payment program. The financial institution computer has instructions stored in memory that compare the account identifiers in the incoming ACH file with the maintained lists of enrolled account identifiers (blocks <b>84</b>, <b>134</b>). For each account enrolled in the prioritized payment program with an unfilled pre-authorized payment request by a select creditor, the financial institution computer appends to an outgoing ACH file one or more prioritized payments responsive to the unfilled pre-authorized payment requests (blocks <b>86</b>, <b>136</b>). The new outgoing ACH file includes entries for the automatic deposit from the incoming ACH file and entries for the prioritized payments, so that the automatic deposit is credited to the account and relatively instantaneously any prioritized payment to a select creditor is debited from the account, resulting in the customer effectively having access only to any surplus funds. In addition, the financial institution computer has instructions that generate fees for the prioritized payments (blocks <b>88</b>, <b>138</b>); the fees can be based per account, per transaction, per vendor, or otherwise as understood by those skilled in the art.

0047Embodiments of the present invention also provide a system <b>20</b> to provide prioritized payments from the proceeds of an automatic deposit to a prepaid card account, as illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 3 and 4</figref>. The system <b>20</b> includes a first computer associated with a source of automatic deposits <b>22</b>, defining a deposit computer <b>24</b>. The deposit computer provides information for an automatic deposit for a customer through an electronic communications network <b>26</b>. The system <b>20</b> also includes one or more second computers associated with a financial institution <b>28</b>, defining a bank computer <b>30</b>, in communication with the deposit computer <b>24</b> through the electronic communications network <b>26</b>. The bank computer receives and processes an ACH file <b>32</b> including the information for the automatic deposit for the customer from the deposit computer <b>24</b>. The bank computer includes software as illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 12 and 14</figref> and discussed below. The system <b>20</b> further includes a third computer associated with a select creditor <b>34</b>, defining a creditor computer <b>36</b>, in communication with the bank computer <b>30</b> through the electronic communications network <b>26</b>. As part of enrolling in the prioritized payment program, the customer pre-authorizes certain requests by the creditor computer <b>36</b> and routes the automatic deposits from the source of automatic deposits <b>22</b> to the bank computer <b>30</b> associated with the financial institution <b>28</b> having the prioritized payment program. The creditor computer <b>36</b>, in turn, has instructions to request a prioritized payment from the bank computer <b>30</b> and receive a prioritized payment <b>44</b> from the customer as described below. The system <b>20</b> also includes a fourth computer associated with a customer prepaid card account <b>38</b> defining a prepaid card processor <b>40</b> as understood by those skilled in the art. The prepaid card processor receives an outgoing ACH file <b>42</b> from the bank computer <b>30</b> through the electronic communications network <b>26</b> and, responsive to the ACH file, credits the automatic deposit proceeds to the prepaid card account <b>38</b> and debits relatively instantaneously any prioritized payment <b>44</b> to the creditor computer <b>36</b> from the prepaid card account <b>38</b> through the electronic communications network <b>26</b>. In turn, this movement of data based on instructions stored on the respective computers allows the display of data to a customer or merchant on available funds, e.g., based on a load on a prepaid card, to show only available funds after the prioritized payment deductions have occurred responsive to the instructions.

0048Embodiments of the present invention also provide a system <b>20</b> to provide prioritized payments from the proceeds of an automatic deposit to a customer bank account, as illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 5 and 6</figref>. The system <b>20</b> includes a first computer associated with a source of automatic deposits <b>22</b>, defining a deposit computer <b>24</b>. The deposit computer provides information for an automatic deposit for a customer through an electronic communications network <b>26</b>. The system <b>20</b> also includes second computer associated with a financial institution <b>28</b>, defining a bank computer <b>30</b>, in communication with the deposit computer <b>24</b> through the electronic communications network <b>26</b>. The bank computer receives and processes an ACH file <b>32</b> including the information for the automatic deposit for the customer from the deposit computer <b>24</b>. The bank computer includes software or program product stored in memory as instructions and executable by the computer as illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 12 and 14</figref> and discussed below. The system <b>20</b> further includes a third computer associated with a select creditor <b>34</b>, defining a creditor computer <b>36</b>, in communication with the bank computer <b>30</b> through the electronic communications network <b>26</b>. As part of enrolling in the prioritized payment program, the customer pre-authorizes certain requests by the creditor computer <b>36</b> and routes the automatic deposits from the source of automatic deposits <b>22</b> to the bank computer <b>30</b> associated with the financial institution <b>28</b> having the prioritized payment program. The creditor computer <b>36</b> can request a prioritized payment from the bank computer <b>30</b> and receive a prioritized payment <b>44</b> from the customer as described below. The system <b>20</b> also includes a fourth computer a second financial institution <b>28</b> associated with a customer bank account <b>52</b> defining a customer institution computer <b>50</b>. The customer institution computer <b>50</b> receives an outgoing ACH file <b>42</b> from the bank computer <b>30</b> through the electronic communications network <b>26</b> and, responsive to the ACH file, credits the automatic deposit proceeds to the customer bank account <b>52</b> and debits relatively instantaneously any prioritized payment <b>44</b> to the creditor computer <b>36</b> from the customer bank account <b>52</b> through the electronic communications network <b>26</b>.

0049In addition, the embodiments of the present invention include a computer program product, as illustrated in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 12 and 14</figref>, associated with the bank computer, stored on a tangible computer memory media <b>62</b>, operable on a computer <b>30</b>. Embodiments of the computer program can include, for example, modules adapted to perform one or more operations. The computer program product, for example, includes a set of instructions <b>64</b> that, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform various operations as described herein. The operations can include maintaining one or more lists <b>46</b> of account identifiers for accounts enrolled in a prioritized payment program by the financial institution <b>28</b> (blocks <b>66</b>, <b>140</b>). The operations also include receiving an incoming ACH file <b>32</b> by the bank computer <b>30</b> (blocks <b>68</b>, <b>142</b>). The ACH file <b>32</b> includes one or more account identifiers associated with an automatic deposit, for example, an automatic deposit destined for a prepaid card account <b>38</b>. The operations further include comparing the account identifiers in the incoming ACH file <b>32</b> with one or more maintained lists <b>46</b> of account identifiers for accounts enrolled in the prioritized payment program (blocks <b>70</b>, <b>144</b>). The operations also include appending to an outgoing ACH file <b>42</b>, responsive to the incoming ACH file <b>32</b>, a prioritized payment <b>44</b> from an account enrolled in the prioritized payment program to the select creditor computer <b>36</b> (blocks <b>72</b>, <b>146</b>), so that the automatic deposit is credited to the customer account <b>38</b> and relatively instantaneously the prioritized payment to the creditor computer is debited from the account <b>38</b>.

0050A person having ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various types of memory are readable by a computer such as described herein, e.g., deposit source computer, bank computer, credit computer, prepaid card processors, or other computers with embodiments of the present invention so that instruction stored in such memory are executable and cause various operations within the computer. Examples of computer readable media include but are not limited to: nonvolatile, hard-coded type media such as read only memories (ROMs), CD-ROMs, and DVD-ROMs, or erasable, electrically programmable read only memories (EEPROMs), recordable type media such as floppy disks, hard disk drives, CD-R/RWs, DVD-RAMs, DVD-R/RWs, DVD+R/RWs, flash drives, memory sticks, and other newer types of memories, and transmission type media such as digital and analog communication links For example, such media can include operating instructions stored therein, as well as instructions related to the system and the method steps described above and can operate on a computer. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that such media can be at other locations instead of or in addition to the bank to store program products, e.g., including software, thereon. Embodiments of a system for providing prioritized payments, for example, can include a plurality of customer access interface devices as illustrated and described herein and one or more remote computer servers positioned to provide communication with each of the plurality of customer access interface devices and being associated with a financial institution. Each of these computer servers, for example, can having one or more of these various types of memory as understood by those skilled in the art.

0051This application is a continuation of and claims the benefit and priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/338,584 titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, And Associated Computer-Implemented Methods” filed on Dec. 18, 2008, which claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/016,213, by Sorbe et al., titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Associated Methods” filed Dec. 21, 2007, and U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/052,454, by Sorbe et al., titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Methods to Prioritize Payments from Preselected Bank Account” filed May 12, 2008, all of which are each incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. This application also relates to U.S. patent pplication Ser. No. 12/338,402, by Sorbe et al., titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Associated Computer-Implemented Methods” filed on Dec. 18, 2008; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/338,440, by Sorbe et al., titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Associated Computer-Implemented Methods” filed on Dec. 18, 2008; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/338,645, by Sorbe et al., titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Computer-Implemented Methods to Prioritize Payments from Preselected Bank Account” filed on Dec. 18, 2008; and U.S. application Ser. No. 12/389,749 filed on Feb. 29, 2009 titled “Methods to Advance Loan Proceeds On Prepaid Cards, Associated Systems and Computer Program Products, which claims priority and benefit to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/029,975 filed on Feb. 20, 2008 titled the same, each and all of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

0052This application is also a continuation of and claims the benefit and priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/782,550 titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, And Associated Computer-Implemented Methods” filed Mar. 1, 2013, which claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/282,186, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,392,299, titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, And Associated Computer-Implemented Methods” filed Oct. 26, 2011, which claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/338,365, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,055,557, titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Associated Computer-Implemented Methods” filed on Dec. 18, 2008, which claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/016,213, by Sorbe et al., titled “Transfer Account Systems, Computer Program Products, and Associated Methods” filed Dec. 21, 2007, all of which are each incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.